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For Penn State, Sloppiness Changes Everything

For Penn State, Sloppiness Changes Everything

Penn State beat Rutgers 41–34, but almost nothing about the night felt encouraging. The win delivered bowl eligibility on paper, yet the performance was filled with the kind of miscues, busted coverages, and predictable play calling that erase momentum in a season that needed a strong final statement.

Kaytron Allen News / Big Ten Network / November 30
Penn State Nittany Lions News / Penn State Nittany Lions on SI / November 30
Why Penn State Wants Actually Wants to Play in a Bowl Game

Why Penn State Wants Actually Wants to Play in a Bowl Game

PISCATAWAY, N.J. | A year ago, Penn State beat Maryland after Thanksgiving to earn a spot in the Big Ten Championship game with the College Football Playoff on the horizon.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / NBC Sports / November 29
Penn State Nittany Lions News / Big Ten Network / November 29
College Football News / Yardbarker / November 29
Pinstripe Bowl could (and should) make Pitt-Penn State renew rivalry 

Pinstripe Bowl could (and should) make Pitt-Penn State renew rivalry 

The Pittsburgh Panthers and Penn State Nittany Lions have a long-standing rivalry that has mostly been put on hold over the past 25 years.

Penn State misses out on top head coach candidate
The all-time college football service academy team
The 'Orange Bowl MVPs' quiz
College Football News / Last Word On Sports / November 29
Penn State Searches for a Statement Finish at Rutgers

Penn State Searches for a Statement Finish at Rutgers

College football’s regular-season curtain falls in Piscataway on Saturday, and for Penn State, it is more than a trip to Rutgers. It is the final data point before Pat Kraft makes the most consequential decision of his tenure.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Last Word On Sports / November 29
Terry Smith’s Final Audition for Penn State as Search Nears End

Terry Smith’s Final Audition for Penn State as Search Nears End

Penn State’s season ends on Saturday at Rutgers, but ultimately, the most important outcome will not be written on a scoreboard. Instead, it will be written in Pat Kraft’s office, where Penn State’s athletic director is closing in on a hire that will define his tenure and potentially either stabilize or fracture the direction of the program.

Clark Lea News / Larry Brown Sports / November 28
Penn State misses out on top head coach candidate

Penn State misses out on top head coach candidate

The Penn State Nittany Lions can cross one major coaching candidate off their list. Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea agreed to a contract extension on Friday, the school announced.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Nittany Central / November 28
Pat Kraft’s Penn State Coaching Search Hits Another Snag as 2 More Candidates Sign Extensions

Pat Kraft’s Penn State Coaching Search Hits Another Snag as 2 More Candidates Sign Extensions

https://nittanycentral.com/feed/ Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft’s search for next head coach could be coming down to the final days. With the regular season ending for teams this weekend, coaches will now have the opportunity to announce their intentions to leave their current programs and coach elsewhere next season.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Nittany Central / November 28
New Faces, Same Machine: Penn State Wrestling Opens 2025-26 With Domination

New Faces, Same Machine: Penn State Wrestling Opens 2025-26 With Domination

https://nittanycentral.com/feed/ Penn State Wrestling has started the 2025-2026 season right where they left off following their fourth straight NCAA title last year.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / The Spun / November 28
Penn State Loses Out On Another Top Coaching Candidate

Penn State Loses Out On Another Top Coaching Candidate

Another top head coaching candidate is off the board. Penn State won't be able to repeat the method that got them James Franklin to get their next head coach.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Penn State Nittany Lions on SI / November 28
The Case for and Against Hiring Terry Smith at Penn State

The Case for and Against Hiring Terry Smith at Penn State

It is hard to ignore the moment as Terry Smith walks off the field, the crowd cheering his name as Penn State’s season begins to turn an emotional corner.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / CFB-HQ on SI / November 27
Nick Saban urges Penn State to replace James Franklin with former NFL coach

Nick Saban urges Penn State to replace James Franklin with former NFL coach

Penn State’s coaching vacancy, opened when the university dismissed James Franklin on October 12 after an unexpected slide, has become one of the most-watched stops on this year’s carousel.

James Franklin News / Athlon Sports / November 27
Penn State Gets Bad News on Thanksgiving

Penn State Gets Bad News on Thanksgiving

The Penn State Nittany Lions fired head coach James Franklin on Oct. 12, after starting the season 3-3, which included a three-game losing streak. Under interim head coach Terry Smith, they've gone 2-3 and now sit at 5-6 on the season.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Penn State Nittany Lions on SI / November 27
Penn State Recruits Through Uncertainty as Early Signing Period Looms

Penn State Recruits Through Uncertainty as Early Signing Period Looms

Penn State's 2026 recruiting class largely has dispersed since James Franklin was fired, with more than half of the class' players having decommitted. With the early signing period approaching, interim head coach Terry Smith said the Nittany Lions continue to recruit through the uncertainty, which remains difficult.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Penn State Nittany Lions on SI / November 26

Nick Saban Endorses Candidate to Follow James Franklin at Penn State

As Penn State's coaching search nears its conclusion, there has been little news but plenty of endorsements regarding James Franklin's replacement. On Wednesday's edition of the Pat McAfee Show, Nick Saban added his.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / The Spun / November 26
Nick Saban Makes Case For Penn State's Next Head Coach

Nick Saban Makes Case For Penn State's Next Head Coach

In his decades as a college football coach across the United States, Nick Saban has a pretty large contacts list of coaching candidates. For the vacant Penn State job, Saban believe that one of his former assistants might be the man for the job.

Kalen Deboer News / CFB-HQ on SI / November 26
$87 million college football coach climbs as a favorite to be named Penn State HC

$87 million college football coach climbs as a favorite to be named Penn State HC

As college football rumors swirl about Lane Kiffin's future, Penn State is quietly searching for the program's next coach to replace James Franklin. The Nittany Lions are still in search of a permanent head coach, while Franklin has already found a new home at Virginia Tech.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Nittany Central / November 26
3 Things for Penn State Football to be thankful for amid disappointing season

3 Things for Penn State Football to be thankful for amid disappointing season

https://nittanycentral.com/feed/ Throughout this tumultuous fall season, Penn State Football has found little success. The season that began with monster National Championship aspirations now finds itself six weeks into a coaching search.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / Nittany Central / November 26
Penn State’s 6-Game Skid Is a Distant Memory — Terry Smith Talks Bowls, Opt-Outs, and the “Extra Game” Goal

Penn State’s 6-Game Skid Is a Distant Memory — Terry Smith Talks Bowls, Opt-Outs, and the “Extra Game” Goal

https://nittanycentral.com/feed/ Two weeks ago, Penn State Football fans were not even thinking about the possibility of a bowl game as Penn State was riding a six game losing streak and had yet to win a conference game.

Penn State Nittany Lions News / CFB-HQ on SI / November 26
Rising college football coach emerges as ‘name to watch’ to replace James Franklin at Penn State

Rising college football coach emerges as ‘name to watch’ to replace James Franklin at Penn State

Penn State fired long-time coach James Franklin on October 12 after a string of damaging losses (three straight to Oregon, UCLA, and Northwestern) and a 3-3 start that left the program off its championship path.

College Football News / Yardbarker / November 25
Why Matt Rhule rejected the Penn State job

Why Matt Rhule rejected the Penn State job to stay at Nebraska

Rhule "turned down" Penn State, where he played linebacker, to stay with Nebraska for 2026. 

Kirby Smart and Georgia add to elite class with flip from Penn State 
NFL Draft intel: Oregon TE Kenyon Sadiq, San Diego State CB Chris Johnson among buzzworthy prospects 
College players whose NFL draft stock has risen the most this season
The 'Orange Bowl MVPs' quiz
NFL News / Yardbarker / November 25
NFL Draft intel: Oregon TE Kenyon Sadiq, San Diego State CB Chris Johnson among buzzworthy prospects 

NFL Draft intel: Oregon TE Kenyon Sadiq, San Diego State CB Chris Johnson among buzzworthy prospects 

Each week, Yardbarker monitors the 2026 NFL Draft, scheduled April 23-25 in Pittsburgh. 

Latest NFL Draft inside information is good news for WR-needy teams
Who are the best first-round draft picks for every NFL team?
Dylan Raiola may have played his last snaps for Nebraska
Bill Belichick, North Carolina land another former Penn State recruit
Lee Corso dislikes being away from college football: 'It sucks'
Penn State Nittany Lions News / Larry Brown Sports / November 22
Penn State running back got hit so hard that the paint flew off his helmet

Penn State running back got hit so hard that the paint flew off his helmet

Penn State running back Nicholas Singleton took a cartoonish hit Saturday in his team’s matchup against Nebraska at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pa.

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